Monthly Archives: August 2014

Lessons learnt are key within the management of knowledge. It’s a way of thinking in contemporary management terms. It is about learning from past experiences good and bad. This is a very effective technique for sharing knowledge and practice within the company. By doing so, colleagues learn from past experience. As Bennis and Ward (1997) stated ‘none of us is as smart as all of us’. Any focus on illegal behaviour is, of course, not condoned and is not part of lessons learnt. Instead, this is an approach to management which relies on the sharing of intelligence.

An attitude of lessons learnt enables individuals and teams in the company to share their knowledge with their colleagues to gain from the experience. It becomes part of organizational resilience. Applying lessons learnt makes sure that similar projects will not have to go through the same trouble as the previous one did. For the company members it can be therapeutic – a form of therapy. It is about a desire to learn and create a culture of learning within the company. This whole idea of reviewing challenging situations and sharing knowledge in a non-judgemental way is most powerful when embedded in the company culture. Therefore, what is required is a culture of learning and a culture of sharing!

This way of thinking and being can also be part of a re-framing in personal development, coaching and leadership. On a personal level we can continual to evaluate and learn by taking a lessons learnt approach, which is far more positive than dwelling on negativity. It is about us all continually learning from experiences, adding to the wisdom and moving forward.